Much of those discoveries were found from the company’s proprietary internet scanner, SpiderSilk co-founder and chief security officer Mossab Hussein told TechCrunch.
Any company would want their data locked down, but mistakes happen and misconfigurations can leave sensitive internal corporate data accessible from the internet. SpiderSilk helps its customers understand their attack surface by looking for things that are exposed but shouldn’t be.
The cybersecurity startup uses its scanner to map out a company’s assets and attack surfaces to detect vulnerabilities and data exposures, and it also simulates cyberattacks to help customers understand where vulnerabilities are in their defenses.
“The attack surface management and threat detection platform we built scans the open internet on a continuous basis in order to attribute all publicly accessible assets back to organizations that could be affected by them, either directly or indirectly,” SpiderSilk’s co-founder and chief executive Rami El Malak told TechCrunch. “As a result, the platform regularly uncovers exploits and highlights how no organization is immune from infrastructure visibility blind-spots.”
El Malak said the funding will help to build out its security, engineering and data science teams, as well as its marketing and sales. He said the company is expanding its presence to North America with sales and engineering teams.
It’s the company’s second round of funding, after a seed round of $500,000 in November 2019, also led by Global Ventures and several angel investors.
“The SpiderSilk team are outstanding partners, solving a critical problem in the ever-complex world of cybersecurity, and protecting companies online from the increasing threats of malicious activity,” said Basil Moftah, general partner at Global Ventures.
The Galaxy S21 is a tank. It’s a big, heavy (8.04 ounces versus its predecessor’s 7.7), blunt instrument of a phone. It’s quintessential Samsung, really — the handset you purchase when too much isn’t quite enough. In fact, it even goes so far as adopting S-Pen functionality — perhaps the largest distinguishing factor between the company’s two flagship lines.
In many ways it — and the rest of the S21 models — are logical extensions of the product line. Samsung hasn’t broken the mold here. But the company didn’t particularly need to. The line remains one of the best Android devices you can buy. It’s a product experience the company is content to refine, while saving more fundamental changes for the decidedly more experimental Galaxy Z line.
Samsung certainly deserves credit for going all in on 5G early. The company was ahead of the curve in adopting next-gen wireless and was among the first to add it across its flagship offerings. 5G became a utilitarian feature remarkably fast — owing in no small part to Qualcomm’s major push to add the tech to its mid-tier chips. In fact, the iPhone 12 may well be the last major flagship that can get away with using the addition of the tech as a major selling point.
With that out of the way, smartphone makers are returning to familiar terrain on which to wage their wars — namely imaging. S-Pen functionality for the Ultra aside, most of the top-level upgrades of this generation come on the camera side of things. No surprise there, of course. The camera has always a focus for Samsung — though the changes largely revolved around software, which is increasingly the trend for many manufacturers.
Image Credits: Brian Heater
There are, however, some hardware changes worth noting. Namely, the new S models represent one of the bigger aesthetic updates in recent memory. I’d mentioned being kind of on the fence about them in my original write up of the news, owing largely to that weird wrinkle of 2020/2021 gadget blogging: not being able to see the device in person. Now that I’ve been toting the product around the streets of New York for several days, I can say definitive that, well, I’m mostly kind of okay with them, I guess.
The big sticking point is that massive contour cut camera housing. Pretty sure I used the word “brutalist” to describe it last time. Having used the product, I’d say it’s fairly apt. There’s something…industrial about the design choice. And it’s really pronounced on the Ultra, which sports four camera holes, plus a laser autofocus sensor and flash. It’s a big, pronounced camera bump built from surprisingly thick metal. I suspect it’s owed, in part, to the “folded” telephoto lens.
Samsung sent along the Phantom Black model. The color was something the company devoted a surprising amount of stage time to during the announcement. It was the kind of attention we rarely see devoted to something as inconsequential as a color finish, outside of some Apple bits. Here’s a long video about it if you’re curious. I don’t know what to tell you. It’s nice. It’s matte black. I do dig the new metallic back; even with Corning on your side, a glass back really feels like an accident waiting to happen.
The curved screen looks nice, per usual, accented well by the round corners. The screen itself is striking — Samsung’s displays always are. The screens on the S21, S21+ and S21 Ultra are 6.2, 6.7 and 6.8 inches, respectively. Those are all unchanged, save for the Ultra, which is, strangely, 0.1 inches smaller than its predecessor. It’s not really noticeable, but is an odd choice from a company that has long insisted that bigger is better when it comes to displays.
Eye Comfort Shield is a welcome addition, adjusting the screen temperature based on time of day and your own usage. If you’ve used Night Shift or something similar, you know the deal — the screen slowly shifts toward the more yellow end of the white balance spectrum, reducing blue light so as to not throw your circadian rhythms out of whack. It’s off by default, so you’ll have to go into settings to change it.
The company has also introduced a Dynamic Refresh Rate feature, which cycles between 46 and 120Hz, depending on the app you’re using. This is designed to save some battery life (a 120Hz along with 5G can be a big power hog). The effect is fairly subtle. I can’t say I really noticed over the course of my usage. I certainly appreciate the effort to find new ways to eke out extra juice.
The new era of Samsung is equally notable for what it left off. The new S models mark the end of an era as the company finally abandons expandable storage (following in the footsteps of the Z line). I mean, I get it. These devices range from 128 to 512GB of storage. For a majority of users, the microSD reader was superfluous. I certainly never needed to use it. Per the company, “Over time, SD card usage has markedly decreased on smartphones because we’ve expanded the options of storage available to consumers.”
Of course, expanding the built-in memory is going to cost you. Mostly, though, it’s always a bit of a bummer to say farewell to a long-time distinguishing factory. Speaking of, the company also ditched the in-box headphones and power adapter, notably deleting some ads in which it mocked Apple for recently doing the same. It’s the headphone jack all over again.
The company offered up a similar sustainability explanation in a recent statement. “We discovered that more and more Galaxy users are reusing accessories they already have and making sustainable choices in their daily lives to promote better recycling habits.” As a consequence, the box is nearly half as thick as those from earlier S lines, for what that’s worth.
As mentioned above, the cameras are remarkably similar to their predecessors, with a few key differences. The S20 Ultra sported an 108-megapixel wide lens (f/1.8), 12-megapixel ultrawide (f/2.2) and 48-megapixel (f/3.5) telephoto (4x zoom), while the S21 Ultra features a 108-megapixel wide (f/1.8), 12-megapixel ultrawide (f/2.2), 10MP (f/2.4) telephoto (3x zoom) and 10MP telephoto (f/4.9) (10x zoom). The dual telephoto lenses are the biggest differentiator.
Image Credits: Brian Heater
The device will switch between telephotos, depending on how much you zoom in. The device performs a lot better than many competing handsets at distances requiring around 10x. Though, while the ability to zoom up to 100x is an extremely impressive thing for a phone to do on paper, the images degrade really quickly at higher levels. At a certain point, the image starts taking on the style of an impressionist painting, which isn’t particularly useful in a majority of cases.
Once Samsung (or whoever) can properly crack the code on translating that noise into signal, it will really be a breakthrough. Still, Zoom Lock is a nice addition in helping to minimize hand shake while zooming. Accidental movements tend to increasing exponentially the tighter you get in on an image. The Super Steady, too, has been improved for video recording.
Portrait mode has been improved. There still tends to be trouble with more complex shapes, but this is a problem I’ve run into with pretty much all solutions. Samsung gets some points here for offering a ton of post-shot portrait editing, from different bokeh levels, to adjusting the focal point to other effects. As with much of the camera software, there’s a lot to play around with.
Other key additions include 8K snap, a nice addition that lets you pull high-res images from a single frame of 8K video. There’s also Vlogger Mode, which shoots from the front and back simultaneously. Someone will no doubt find some social use for this, but it feels a bit gimmicky — one of those features a majority of users will promptly forget about. Additional options are generally a good thing, though the camera software has gotten to the point where there are a ton of menus to navigate.
I get the sense that most users want a way to quickly snap photos and shoot videos. The lower-end S21 entries are great for that. The hardware is strong enough to give you great shots with minimal effort. If you’re someone who really enjoys drilling down on features and getting the best images on-device without exporting to a third-party app, the Ultra is the choice for you. In addition to being a kind of kitchen sink approach, the high-end device is all about choice.
Image Credits: Brian Heater
The addition of S Pen functionality is probably the most notable — and curious — thing the Ultra has going for it. On the face of it, this feels like the latest — and most pronounced — in a series of moves effectively blurring the lines between the company’s two flagships. Perhaps Samsung will make a move to further differentiate the next Note, or maybe the company is content to simply let the device meld over time.
There is one major difference off the bat, of course. Namely the fact that there’s no pen slot on the S21. This means that:
The stylus is sold separately.
You need to buy a case with an S Pen holder (also sold separately, naturally) if you’ve got any hope of not losing it.
Image Credits: Brian Heater
I happened to have a Note S Pen lying around and found the experience to be pretty smooth. I’ve been upfront about the fact that I’m not really a stylus person myself, but Samsung’s done a good job building up the software over the years. The S Pen is a surprisingly versatile tool, courtesy of several generations of updates. But I would say if the peripheral is important to you, honestly, just buy a Note.
The components are what you’d expect from a high-end Samsung. That includes the brand new Snapdragon 888 (in some markets, at least), and either 12 or 16GB of RAM and 128, 256 or 512GB of storage on the Ultra. The battery remains the same as last year, at 5,000mAh. In spite of 5G and a high refresh rate, I’ve gotten more than a day and a half of moderate use on a single charge.
In the end, the S21 isn’t a huge change over the S20. It’s more of a refinement, really. But it does represent a big change for Samsung. The company has implemented a $200 price drop across the board for these products. The S21, S21+ and S21 Ultra start at $799, $999 and $1,199, respectively. None are what you would call cheap, exactly, but $200 isn’t exactly insignificant, whether it means easing the blow of getting in on the entry level or taking the pain out of going for a higher-end model.
It’s a clear reflection of a few years’ worth of stagnating smartphone sales, exacerbated by some dire numbers amid COVID. It’s nice to see a company take those issues — and concern around spending $1,000+ on a smartphone — to heart beyond simply offering up a flagship “lite.”
A startup based out of San Diego and Taipei is quietly nailing fundings and deals from some of the biggest names in electronics. Kneron, which specializes in energy-efficient processors for edge artificial intelligence, just raised a strategic funding round from Taiwan’s manufacturing giant Foxconn and integrated circuit producer Winbond.
The deal came a year after Kneron closed a $40 million round led by Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-Shing’s Horizons Ventures. Amongst its other prominent investors are Alibaba Entrepreneurship Fund, Sequoia Capital, Qualcomm and SparkLabs Taipei.
Kneron declined to disclose the dollar amount of the investment from Foxconn and Winbond due to investor requests but said it was an “eight figures” deal, founder and CEO Albert Liu told TechCrunch in an interview.
Founded in 2015, Kneron’s latest product is a neural processing unit that can enable sophisticated AI applications without relying on the cloud. The startup is directly taking on the chips of Intel and Google, which it claims are more energy-consuming than its offering. The startup recently got a talent boost after hiring Davis Chen, Qualcomm’s former Taipei head of engineering.
Among Kneron’s customers are Chinese air conditioning giant Gree and German’s autonomous driving software provider Teraki, and the new deal is turning the world’s largest electronics manufacturer into a client. As part of the strategic agreement, Kneron will work with Foxconn on the latter’s smart manufacturing and newly introduced open platform for electric vehicles, while its work with Winbond will focus on microcontroller unit (MCU)-based AI and memory computing.
“Low-power AI chips are pretty easy to put into sensors. We all know that in some operation lines, sensors are quite small, so it’s not easy to use a big GPU [graphics processing unit] or CPU [central processing unit], especially when power consumption is a big concern,” said Liu, who held R&D positions at Qualcomm and Samsung before founding Kneron.
Unlike some of its competitors, Kneron designs chips for a wide range of use cases, from manufacturing, smart home, smartphones, robotics, surveillance, payments, to autonomous driving. It doesn’t just make chips but also the AI software embedded in the chips, a strategy that Liu said differentiates his company from China’s AI darlings like SenseTime and Megvii, which enable AI service through the cloud.
Kneron has also been on a less aggressive funding pace than these companies, which fuel their rapid expansion through outsize financing rounds. Six-year-old SenseTime has raised about $2.6 billion to date, while nine-year-old Megvii has banked about $1.4 billion. Kneron, in comparison, has raised just over $70 million from a Series A round.
Like the Chinese AI upstarts, Kneron is weighing an initial public offering. The company is expected to make a profit in 2023, Liu said, and “that will probably be a good time for us to go IPO.”
Samsung Electronics vice chairman Jay Y. Lee is back in prison following a retrial of his 2017 conviction in a bribery case that helped lead to the downfall of former South Korean president Park Guen-hye. The Seoul High Court sentenced Lee to 30 months on Monday.
Lee was originally convicted of bribery in 2017 and sentenced to five years, but was released in 2018 after the sentence was reduced and suspended on appeal. In August 2019, however, South Korea’s Supreme Court overturned the appeals court, ruling that it was too lenient, and ordered the case to be retried.
Lee was expected to become chairman of Samsung after the death of his father, Lee Kun-hee, in October 2020. He has served as the chaebol’s de facto leader since his father suffered a stroke in 2014. With Lee’s sentencing today, it is unclear who will take over his responsibilities at Samsung.
Charges against Lee included bribing Park to gain support for deals that would have helped Lee inherit control of Samsung from his father. The illegal payments played a major role in the corruption scandal that led to Park’s impeachment, arrest and 25-year prison sentence.
The bribery case is separate from another one Lee is involved in, over alleged accounting fraud and stock manipulation. Hearings in that case begun in October.
I suspect it will be a while before I get excited over wireless earbuds. It’s not for a lack of trying on the part of manufacturers. In fact, quite the contrary. The category actually matured quite quickly, compared to various other verticals in the consumer electronics space. The truth is, most major hardware makers have gotten pretty decent at making a pair of wireless buds — many for pretty cheap.
Samsung’s been in that category for a while now. I’ve liked the last several models I’ve tried from the company. The sound quality has been good, they’re generally pretty comfortable — a good experience, all around. In fact, one of the issues I’ve raised the last couple of times is the fact that Samsung didn’t offer its own equivalent to products like the AirPods Pro and Sony WF-1000XM3 (though that latter reference is starting to become a bit dated).
It’s a hole in the lineup now filled by the Galaxy Buds Pro, which slot in the high end, above the Galaxy Buds Live and Galaxy Buds+. The naming conventions could be streamlined a bit, but it’s a small complaint in the grand scheme. At $199, the Pros are $30 more than the Live and $50 more than the Pluses. More importantly, it puts them at $50 less than the AirPods Pro – their clearest analogue.
Image Credits: Brian Heater
And like Apple’s Pro buds, the Galaxy Buds are very specifically designed to operate with Samsung’s devices. You can still pair them with other Android handsets, but you’re going to lose key parts of the software integration. This honestly seems to be the way things are headed, with practically every smartphone company also manufacturing their own headphones. And certainly Samsung’s got enough market share that such a play makes sense.
If you do want to use them on another Android device, you can pair them by downloading the Galaxy Wearables app. You can pair them manually without the app, but you’ll lose a bunch more features in the process. Like past Galaxy Buds models, there’s no physical button on the case for pairing.
After several generations of devices, Samsung’s certainly got the foundation in place. And its purchase of Harman/AKG in 2017 has clearly played a key role in its ability to create some quality audio accessories. All of that comes into play here. Samsung’s made some solid choices on the design front. The charging case is remarkably compact. I was actually a bit surprised when I opened the package. It’s not nearly as long as the AirPods case, though it is a bit thicker. In any case, it’s certainly compact enough to carry around, unlike, say the Powerbeats Pro.
The battery claims are pretty impressive, given the size. The company rates the buds at five hours each and 28 hours with the case. Turn off active noise canceling and Bixby (I’ll let you guess which of those two I won’t miss) and the numbers bump up to eight and 20 hours, respectively. I will say that I was able to confidently bring the headphones with me on one of my lengthy morning sabbaticals without worrying about packing the case. That’s not something I can say about every wireless earbud.
Image Credits: Brian Heater
The headphones sport an 11-millimeter woofer and 6.5-millimeter tweeter. I found the sound to be an overall good mix, whether listening to music or a podcast. If you’re so included, you can also fiddle with the equalizer in the wearable app. It features six presets, rather than sliders, so it’s an imperfect science. But I didn’t really feel the need to mess around in there much.
The active noise canceling is solid, as well (okay, I admit it, Bixby is the one I’d drop in a heartbeat). I wasn’t really aware at how good a job it was doing drowning out street noise until I switched it off — this can be accomplished with a long press on the side touch panel or through the app. By default the former switches between ANC and transparent mode, skipping the off mode in the middle. Like the equalizer, you an adjust the level of ANC here — either high or low.
If you’re a Samsung true believer, Seamless Switch can be enabled, allowing you to, say, switch between a tablet and a phone when a call comes in. Other neat Samsung-specific features include the ability to use the buds as a kind of makeshift lavalier mic while recording video on the Galaxy S21. The SmartThings app can also be used to find misplaced buds. All in all, Samsung is clearly building up its ecosystem here.
Image Credits: Brian Heater
The design of the buds themselves has been streamlined since the extremely bean-like Buds Live. The company says they were designed to minimize contact with the ear, to help relieve pressure. It’s a shame that everyone isn’t able to try every earbud on before buying — how they fit in your own ears is obviously an extremely personal thing.
I found, however, that one of my ears tends to ache when wearing them for a prolonged period — not an issue I’ve had with either the AirPods Pro or Pixel Buds (the Powerbeats Pro are also great in this respect). I found myself fiddling with them semi-regularly and triggering the touch mechanism in the process (this can be turned off by default in the app).
Most of my issues with the Buds Pro are pretty minor. They’re a worthy update to the line and a great pair of headphones if you’re a Samsung user.
Samsung lowers prices with its latest Galaxy S phones, Google completes its Fitbit acquisition and Beyond Meat is coming to Taco Bell. This is your Daily Crunch for January 14, 2021.
The big story: Samsung unveils Galaxy S21 line
Samsung’s new line of phones includes the S21, S21+ and S21 Ultra, priced at $799, $999 and $1,119 respectively, an across-the-board price cut of $200. Brian Heater writes that the Ultra, in particular, “has one very important trick up its sleeve” — namely compatibility with the S Pen.
All three phones are available for pre-order now and start shipping on January 29.
In addition, Samsung announced the Galaxy Buds Pro, which cost $199 and come with a stated five hours of battery life. And it’s launching a Bluetooth locator, dubbed the Galaxy SmartTag.
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Even before the leaks, we all saw the Galaxy Buds Pro coming. It was a given that the company was planning to deliver its own take on Apple’s AirPods Pro, with improved sound quality and active noise canceling. The real secret weapon here, however, may be the price.
This morning’s S21 announcement found Samsung dropping $200 off the price of its flagship smartphone, and here the Galaxy Buds come in at $50 cheaper than the AirPods’ asking price. It’s not clearance-bin pricing exactly, but $199 is a pretty reasonable starting price. And Samsung’s earbud track record is a pretty good indication that the headphones will be solid.
The buds get a stated five hours of on-board battery life. That bumps up to eight hours with active noise canceling and Bixby Voice off — one of those things I can fairly easily live without. The case bumps things up to 18 and 28 hours, respectively. Pretty impressive claims for a quite small case.
Image Credits: Samsung
The buds’ design improves on the Galaxy Buds Live’s bean design, trading it for something a bit more ergonomic that’s designed to reduce the contact area between the device and the ear. Per Samsung’s claims, the ANC is capable of reducing ambient sound up to 99%. You can tweak the settings from there. They sport an 11 mm woofer and 6.5 mm tweeter, along with three microphones for calls.
There are a couple of features specifically for Samsung devices, including auto switching between phones and tablets, as well as Dolby head tracking and microphone capabilities for video recording on the Galaxy S21.
The buds are available in three colors and go up for order today. They’ll hit retail tomorrow.
Samsung wasted no time this year. With Mobile World Congress pushed back six or so months, the hardware maker hitched its wagon to the tail end of the CES whirlwind — though unlike its press conference earlier in the week, the company is very much on its own for the latest Unpacked.
And why not? In spite of broader issues with the mobile industry (certainly not helped by the COVID-19 pandemic), the Galaxy line is still very much a draw. People may not be as eager to buy a flagship as they were a couple of years ago, but when they do, it’s frequently a Samsung device.
I tend to save pricing for the end of these kinds of posts, but it really bears mention up front. Samsung’s launching three key iterations of the S21 line today: the S21, S21+ and S21 Ultra. Those are priced at $799, $999 and $1,119 respectively, here in the States. That’s down from $999, $1,199 and $1,399 last year. While it’s true we’re still very much in the flagship price range here, a $200 drop is not insignificant.
Image Credits: Samsung
Rather, it points to a very conscious correction — one that goes beyond simply introducing a budget flagship or flagship lite to appease that segment of the market. Smartphone sales were already lagging before the pandemic, and the routine pricing of flagships above $1,000 was a considerable piece of that. Obviously the pandemic has only exacerbated the situation for myriad reasons, and 5G, which was expected to lead to a sales rebound didn’t move the needle nearly as much as anticipated.
Of course, 5G was a headliner feature for Samsung all the way back in 2019. The company has been all-in with the Galaxy line for a while now, and frankly, the feature is just kind of expected now. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Samsung is going back to imaging as a key differentiator.
Here’s what Mobile head TM Roh has to say about the new handsets:
We are living in a mobile-first world, and with so many of us working remotely and spending more time at home, we wanted to deliver a smartphone experience that meets the rigorous multimedia demands of our continuously changing routines. We also recognize the importance of choice, especially now, and that’s why the Galaxy S21 series gives you the freedom to choose the best device for your style and needs.
I absolutely understand why companies continue to go the “in these challenging times” route with these announcements, though I will say that, for the most part, the notion of device upgrades as a response to COVID-19 is really overstated here, beyond the aforementioned price drop. And I suspect that, with fewer people leaving the house these days, the dream of a smartphone as a primary productivity device has probably dampened of late.
Image Credits: Samsung
Still, the S21 Ultra, in particular, has one very important trick up its sleeve. Samsung is further blurring the line between the Galaxy S and Note by making the Ultra S Pen compatible. The experience will vary to some degree, but users will be able to use the stylus to write and draw on the handset. It’s sold separately and there’s no in-device housing for the pen, though Samsung will be offering a case that will hold it. It will be interesting to see if the company goes out of its way to distinguish the new Note, but it seems equally possible that the lines are simply converging. After all, the S Pen has long been the key distinguishing factor.
The devices also get Ultra-wideband capabilities, which will bring a number of capabilities, including the ability to unlock car doors and AR messages to find lost items. More detail on that soon, no doubt.
Visually, the biggest change here is the camera housing, which gets streamlined. I’m holding off judgement until I see it in person, but the new “Contour Cut” housing feels a bit more brutalist or perhaps industrial than the prior generation. The device also drops the expandable memory. A strong argument could be made that current on-board storage has made microSD redundant for many or most, but it was always a nice little differentiator.
The company has also removed the headphones charging adapter from the box, a move the world saw coming when the company deleted ads ribbing Apple from dropping accessories over what it said were environmental concerns. It’s the headphone jack all over again, because history rhymes.
Hardware-wise, the triple-camera situation is similar. On the S21 and 21+ you get a 12-megapixel ultrawide, 12-megapixel wide and 64-megapixel telephoto with 30x space zoom. The Ultra bumps that up to a 12-megapixel ultra-wide, 108-megapixel wide and a dual-telephoto lens system with 3x and 10x optical zoom. That’s the first time Samsung has offered a dual-telephoto setup. The Ultra also sports improved low-light shooting, courtesy of the Bright Night sensor.
Image Credits: Samsung
Software imaging updates include the ability to pull stills from 8K shooting, improved image stabilization and new modes like “Vlogger view,” which shoots from the front and rear camera simultaneously. I see limited use for that last bit in my own life, but I’m sure folks will find a creative use for it.
The screens measure in at 6.1, 6.7 and 6.8 inches (that last one is a decrease from the S20 Ultra’s 6.9 inches). All sport a 120Hz refresh rate that adapts based on usage. The phones also get the new Eye Comfort Shield, which reduces blue light as the day goes on.
Here in the States, all three phones sport the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 888. The S21 and S21+ start at 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, while the Ultra starts at 12GB and 256GB. The batteries are pretty healthy, clocking in at 4000, 4800 and 5000mAh. They’re all available for pre-order now and start shipping January 29.
Alongside its other announcements at Samsung’s event today, the company introduced its new Galaxy SmartTag Bluetooth locator, a lost item beacon for Samsung owners and a competitor with Tile. Like Tile and Apple’s forthcoming AirTags, the beacon can be attached to keys, a bag, a pet’s collar or anything else you want to track. Initially, these SmartTags will use Bluetooth to communicate with a nearby Samsung device, however, the company confirmed a ultra-wideband (UWB) powered version called the SmartTag+ will arrive later this year.
The latter would allow the SmartTag to better compete with Apple’s AirTags, which are also expected to take advantage of newer iPhones’ UWB capabilities. Tile, in anticipation of this news, has already developed a UWB tracker arriving later this year, as well.
The SmartTag announced today, the Galaxy SmartTag, will use Bluetooth and there is only one main SKU — not a range of products in different sizes or configurations. However, the tracker will be sold in two color variations: Black and Oatmeal.
The tracker works with any Galaxy device, a Samsung rep told us, as long as the device runs Android 10 or later.
Device owners can then locate the missing item with the SmartTag attached using the SmartThings Find app.
This works similar to Tile and other BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) trackers. When the SmartTag is offline — meaning, disconnected from the Galaxy S21 or other device — it sends a BLE signal that can be detected by nearby Galaxy devices. When detected, the device will send the nearby location information to the SmartThings Fine app so you can locate the item. Samsung says the SmartThings Find user data is encrypted and securely protected, so your location and personal information is safe when you lose your device and use the app to search for it.
The app will also offer a variety of locating tools, including a “Notify me when it’s found” option, as well as “Search Nearby,” “Search,” and “Ring” tools. Like Tile, you can also use a SmartTag to locate a missing phone. In this case, you push the Galaxy SmartTag button twice to receive an alert to help locate the missing phone.
The tag can also be customized to do other things when pushed once, so you could easily turn on your lights or TV when you return home, for example.
Ahead of the announcement, regulatory documents showed the tracker as a slightly chunkier version of Tile’s trackers, powered by a CR2032 cell battery, with Bluetooth connectivity. (We’ve confirmed the battery is, in fact, a user-replaceable CR2032.)
A Samsung rep could not provide us with the official and detailed tech specs for the device ahead of its announcement today, but we’ll update if the company figures it out. Unfortunately, without the confirmed details like whether the battery is user-replaceable, for example, or what the range is, it’s difficult to make a proper comparison to the existing trackers on the market. (You can’t always go off leaks alone here, either, as they aren’t always an indication of the final product. But the regulatory filings are likely a good starting point.)
To promote adoption, Samsung is giving away the new trackers pre-orders. From Jan. 14 to Jan. 28, 2021, consumers who pre-order the Galaxy S21 Ultra will get a $200 Samsung Credit plus a free Galaxy SmartTag. That could help the devices gain a little more traction, as Samsung’s previous investments in tracking gadgets, including its 2018 LTE-based SmartThings tracking fobs, never really caught on.
Outside the pre-order promotion, the SmartTags will cost $29.99 individually and will be sold starting Jan. 29th.
This is slightly steeper than Tile’s entry-level Bluetooth tracker, the Tile Mate, which retails for $24.99.
The last several years have seen a substantial increase of ability for robotic exoskeleton technology. Completely understandable. For one thing, it’s that rare technology you encounter that really feels like it’s going to change lives for the better the first time you see it. I’ve had a number of demos with companies that frankly took my breath away — watching someone walk across the room for the first time in years while their spouse stands by you crying will do that.
For another thing, there are two distinct use cases for this tech. The first is the aforementioned mobility — whether it’s full paralysis or simply helping people with walking impairments move a bit more easily. The second is work. Exoskeletons have great potential to ease the burden of lifting heavy objects or standing for extended periods. For this reason, many companies like Esko Bionics have created two distinct divisions to serve both sides.
So it’s a big, potential market — albeit one that’s still going to take a number of years to mature. For that reason, we’re really only talking rough projections here. I do think there’s still space for some smaller companies to carve out a meaningful business in the category.
I also won’t be surprised when more big companies get involved in the category. It’s a good way to put your stamp on the robotics category. Samsung’s GEMS is certainly the biggest-name product in the category this week at CES — even if it didn’t warrant a ton of stage time. It debuted at the event two years ago and we were able to try it out. For now, the news centered around hardware improvements like battery and the beginning of clinical trials – a necessary part of bringing this sort of healthcare or healthcare-adjacent product to market.
As with most of Samsung’s robotics announced at the show this week, the jury is very much still out with regards to how seriously the company is taking the product. Last year it made a brief appearance at CES as part of an “immersive workout experience.”
Image Credits: Archelis
Some smaller companies have shown off compelling entries. Japan-based Archelis Inc. is top of mind, showcasing the ArchelisFX, whose name derives from the Japanese word for “walkable chair.” The device is designed for a number of different scenarios, including back pain and those who have recently undergone surgery. The company says it will be available to rent or buy for around $5,000.
On the whole, the exoskeletons on display at this year’s virtual CES tend largely toward the mobility side of the equation. Notably absent was Sarcos Robotics, which announced a partnership with Delta Airlines at last year’s event. In September, the company built on that interest to raise a $40 million round.
The year of the first-ever all-virtual CES is, unsurprisingly, the year of the virtual gym. The past 12 months have seen most of our fitness routines completely transformed — speaking for myself, my Apple Watch step count shows two big empty spots where March and April are.
Fitness startups have seen unexpected windfall in all of this. In June, Lululemon announced plans to acquire Mirror for $500 million, while competitors like Tonal saw a 7x increase in sales for the year. In December, Apple launched Fitness+, its own on-demand service designed to take on the Pelotons of the world.
It’s hard to shake the feeling that we’re starting to see a streaming service-style land rush on the fitness side of things. It’s a massive industry, of course, and odds are things will never return exactly to “normal” in the wake of all of this, but unlike movie services, it’s hard to imagine people subscribing to more than one at a time.
Perhaps the biggest name to enter the market thus far at CES is Samsung. The electronics giant announced Smart Trainer, an addition to its growing line of fitness-focused apps. The system is designed specially for Samsung’s Smart TVs, using a webcam to track exercises. On that front, at least, it seems to be a bit more in-depth than Apple’s Watch-only tracking, which relies on an accelerometer and heart-rate monitor for feedback. Like Fitness+, it will employ trainers to lead exercises, including workout celebrity Jillian Michaels.
Ultrahuman is another major fitness video platform making its debut this week. The startup recently closed an $8 million round. Like Fitness+, its biotracking is built around the Apple Watch, showcasing heart rate and calories burned, among other metrics. The service compares its offering to a “masterclass” for fitness.
Partners include leading athletes and celebrities like Crossfit champion Kara Saunders, fitness celebrity Amanda Cerny, coach Johannes Bartl, hybrid athlete and coach Kris Gethin and MindSize CEO Christian Straka to name a few. Available on iOS and Android devices, the app also integrates biofeedback via its Apple Watch integration to measure and improve the efficacy of meditation and workouts. Compared to Calm and Headspace’s celebrity content approach, Ultrahuman uses a technology platform-based approach to improve experience and long-term results.
These services set themselves apart from the likes of Mirror, Peloton and new offerings from the likes of NordicTrack, in that these technologies ditch the heavy exercise equipment, lowering the barrier of entry (though I suppose Samsung’s does require a big, expensive TV). The fact is that demand will decrease when people feel more comfortable going to the gym. That will certainly shake out the industry to a certain extent.
For many people, however, once the secrets of home fitness have been unlocked, they may never want to visit the gym again.
One year in, the COVID-19 global health pandemic continues to have something of a dragging effect on many aspects of life. But today, a key bellwether for how technology is developing underscored how the industry continues to march on. The number of patents granted in the U.S. in 2020 totaled 352,013, representing a decline of just under 1% compared to the year before (the final tally for 2019 was 354,428 patents granted).
At the same time, patent applications rose almost 5% last year, a sign of how future years will likely see a boost in numbers again, according to figures from IFI CLAIMS Patent Services, which tracks applications and trends in patents at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. As with previous years, IBM led the pack in terms of number of patents granted in the year, but Samsung, in aggregate, continues to hold the most patents of any company.
“Overall, U.S. patent activity was down slightly last year, despite the pandemic. This is a minor downward tick in what’s been a largely upward trajectory we’ve seen over the past decade, and it’s still 13 percent higher than what we saw in 2018,” said Mike Baycroft, CEO of IFI CLAIMS Patent Services, in a statement. “Another positive indicator is that published pre-grant applications saw a nominal increase in 2020. But we’ll have to wait at least another year before we can determine if the pandemic had any impact.”
Patents, and lawsuits related to the infringing of them, have been part of a bigger theme for a number of years in the world of technology, with companies like Apple and Samsung, and Oracle and Google, using these against each other as an analogue for their larger commercial competition.
While the heyday of employing those tactics appear to be mostly over, at least for the moment, patents still play a vital role as an indicator of the way that tech is developing: they point to the pace of innovation, who is taking the lead in that on a foundational basis, and what kinds of areas are driving the future of tech in a more general sense.
In that regard, 2020’s numbers tell us that Samsung continues to keep a very wide margin when it comes to overall number of patents. The company now has 80,577 patents in total, up 5% more than in the year before. It has a very large margin still over the second-biggest patent holder. IBM currently holds 38,541 patents.
To be sure, in terms of activity in the last year, IBM leads the pack still when it comes to the most patents secured in 2020, with9,130 grants, although this declined 1% compared to a year ago. Samsung was granted 6,415 patents at number two, with Canon Inc., Microsoft, Intel, Taiwan Semiconductor, LG Electronics, Apple, Huawei Technologies and Qualcomm making up the rest of the top-10 list.
Amazon (number 11 at 2,244 patents), Google (17 with 1,817 patents) and Facebook (38 with 938 patents) also made the top 50 patent recipients this year.
Technology trends
While the concept of patents has a long history that predates the rise of consumer electronics, they have seen an ineluctable shift away from physical systems and hardware, and toward the services that run on these, over time. In the last year, the top two most popular technology classes patented, IFI said, were electrical digital data processing and transmission of digital information — the generic names that underpin software and how information and data are stored and processed.
Interestingly, IFI found that “computer systems based on biological models” was the fastest-growing technology on the list, up 67% last year compared to its growth between 2016 and 2020. The category points to the ongoing and huge interest in artificial intelligence, where areas like neural networking and other tech processes based on the mechanics of the human brain continue to be in hot demand, with Google, Microsoft and Intel all major patent winners in the area, IFI said. Alongside that aspect of AI, it said that machine learning, quantum computing, autonomous technology and 3D printing also saw big increases.
As a point of comparison, last year medical and biological technologies figured very strongly, with areas like hybrid plant creation topping the list of trending technology, and CRISPR gene-editing and cancer therapies also figuring strongly. It’s interesting that in a year with a global health pandemic, and unprecedented medical research taking place in the race to find remedies and vaccines, we have seen little of that play out in patents granted, although I’m guessing the results would be different if considering what is being filed. It will be worth watching how this plays out in coming years, along with other trends that made themselves very prominent in the last year, such as e-commerce and cloud computing.
Interestingly, despite the regulatory and public perception setbacks faced by companies like Juul, electrical smoking devices still saw an increase of 55% in terms of patents filed last year. This indicates that there is still going to be a lot of development in the area as traditional smoking continues to be scrutinised and decline, but clearly the addiction does not.
Top 50 list for 2020, according to IFI Claims:
1 IBM 9130
2 Samsung Electronics 6415
3 Canon 3225
4 Microsoft 2905
5 Intel Corp 2867
6 Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC) 2833
7 LG Electronics 2831
8 Apple 2792
9 Huawei Technologies 2761
10 Qualcomm 2276
11 Amazon Technologies 2244
12 Sony 2239
13 BOE Technology Group 2144
14 Toyota 2079
15 Ford 2025
16 Samsung Display 1902
17 Google 1817
18 General Electric 1760
19 Micron Technology 1535
20 Hyundai 1464
21 Boeing 1435
22 Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson 1366
23 Seiko Epson 1334
24 Kia Motors 1323
25 Panasonic 1283
26 AT&T 1238
27 Honda 1205
28 Mitsubishi 1204
29 Texas Instruments 1147
30 EMC 1094
31 Cisco 1059
32 Sharp 1042
33 Denso 1030
34 LG Display 989
35 Robert Bosch 965
36 Toshiba 957
37 LG Chem 947
38 Facebook 938
39 NEC 937
40 SK Hynix 930
41 RicohCoLtd 928
42 Fujitsu 917
43 Koninklijke Philips 874
44 Hewlett Packard 873
45 Dell 849
46 Fujifilm 814
47 Hewlett Packard Enterprise 807
48 GM 781
49 Halliburton Energy 771
50 Murata Manufacturing 764
In the world of annual refresh cycles, there’s always been a big question mark around what to do with all of the old tech we too readily abandon. There are a number of options for disposing and recycling these objects that often contain rare earth and sometimes harmful material. The concept of upcycling has also become an increasingly popular option – offering a new lease on life for old technology. After all, your three-year-old smartphone may not be the latest and greatest, but that doesn’t mean it’s necessarily worthless.
During this morning’s CES kickoff press conference, Samsung outlined its new Galaxy Upcycling at Home program. For now, we got some pretty broad strokes about the program – and we’ll likely get more information at this Friday’s Galaxy Unpacked event. Here’s what the company had to say, “The new program reimagines the lifecycle of an older Galaxy phone and offers consumers options on how they might be able to repurpose their device to create a variety of convenient IoT tools.”
Examples from the presser include a baby monitor, pet care sensor for turning on lights remotely and a more abstract “digitally safe home” using Samsung Knox. It will be interesting to see what else the company’s got in store in that front – and certainly there’s something to be said for keeping old tech relevant even after its planned obsolescence.
The other piece of the puzzle is one of the more fun initiatives the company has introduced in recent years, with boxes that can be converted into house hold objects. The company announced this morning that all of its QLED, UHD TV and audio projects will feature the packaging.
Per Samsung,
As part of an ongoing commitment to eco-consciousness, Samsung is creating products and solutions with sustainability at the core. For example, Samsung’s new Solar Cell Remote Control—made in part with recycled plastic—can be charged via solar or indoor lighting, reducing battery waste.
For the last couple of years, Samsung’s CES press conferences have featured a parade of futuristic home robots. They’re are smart, dexterous and impressive (and reasonably adorable). But home robots are hard. Like, really, really hard. There’s a reason the robotic vacuum continues to be one real viable home robot nearly 20 years after the Roomba’s introduction.
It’s the same reason the JetBot 90 AI+ Vacuum seems to be the one really viable bit of home robotics from the event. The company also showed off updates to the Bot Handy it introduced at last year’s show. That, coupled with the new Bot Care, is far more in line with the kind of humanoid designs science fiction has led us believe we’ll be getting in the next few years.
And science fiction seems to still be an operative descriptor here. At last years show, the robots put on a kind of Chuck E. Cheese-style presentation, running through choreographed tasks on stage, with limited human interaction. Understandably – there’s a lot that goes into this sort of thing, and for the moment, the technology feels like proof of concept more than anything.
Image Credits: Samsung
The company mentioned the “not too distant future” in reference to the tech, while the small print at the corner of the screen said “This robot is undergoing research and development, and is not yet for sale.” That seems to be putting it mildly, as the wheeled Bot Care reminds its owner of a meeting and pops up a screen for a conference call.
I don’t think anyone has an illusions that we’ll be seeing any of this tech during the current epidemic, though I suppose there’s an argument to be made that this is the “new normal” the company is prepping us for. The Bot Handy moving dishes from the sink to dishwasher seems roughly as realistic.
Image Credits: Samsung
I’m happy to be wrong, but I don’t think any of us are holding our breath for a viable version of this tech in the near term. We can, however, appreciate the JetBot 90 AI+ Vacuum. That, after all, has a rough date, arriving in the U.S. at some point in the first half of this year.
The robot vacuum features an on-board LiDAR sensor, coupled with an object detection algorithm that helps it build an ideal path around the user’s home. Interestingly, the camera can also be viewed remotely by the user, doubling as a kind of security cam (though Samsung seems to avoid actually using the word) and a pet monitor.
Happy almost CES! Sure the year’s biggest consumer electronics show hasn’t officially kicked off, but, well, what do such arbitrary signposts really mean in a year like 2021, right? Samsung just dropped what’s almost certainly one of its biggest pieces of news for the show, with the arrival of the Galaxy Chromebook 2.
The two-in-one follows almost a year to a day after the announcement of the original. It appears to share a fair bit of the charm of its predecessor, but notably has a much improvement price point. This time out the Chrome OS powered portable starts at a far more reasonable $549 – down from $999.
Image Credits: Samsung
Mind you, that’s for the one running a 10th gen Intel Celeron processor. If you want the Core i3, that starts at $699. It’s a bit of a jump, but a better starting point for users looking at the product as day-to-day machine. And besides, it’s still significantly less expensive than the original. Keep in mind here that last year’s model started with an i5 – which is to say the price drop comes with a bit of a processor downgrade.
Battery life was an issue on the original and is still a bit of a question here. The device now sports a QLED display (which Samsung claims is “world’s first” for a Chromebook), rather than the original’s 4K AMOLED, which could go a ways toward improving longevity.
The changes between the first and second gen product are a pretty clear indicator that companies are still trying to figure out precisely what a “premium Chromebook” entails. After all, it wasn’t all that long ago that the phrase was a bit of an oxymoron. The company’s computing GM Shoneel Kolhatkar sums up the general though process here pretty well in the associated press announcement,
Many kids grew up using Chromebooks in school, and as they enter the workforce, their needs evolve, they’re looking for premium, powerful hardware that can elevate that intuitive Google experience. We designed the Galaxy Chromebook 2 with these users in mind, taking the popular features from Galaxy Chromebook—incredible visuals, great specs, and gorgeous design and color—and bringing them to a wider base of customers.
In a sense, Samsung is taking a similar journey as the one Google made from the Pixelbook to the Pixelbook Go. And with Google pretty quiet on that front for the moment, there’s a decent sized market opening for Samsung here.
The Galaxy Chromebook 2 arrives later this quarter, sporting a 13.3 inch display, 4/8GB of RAM and 64/128GB of storage. And yes, it still comes in “Fiesta Red” or gray, if you prefer.
Tile is preparing to introduce a new product this year that will serve as a rival to Apple’s long-awaited AirTags and other lost item trackers coming to the market, including those from Samsung, TechCrunch has learned. While previous Tile trackers have leveraged Bluetooth to help users locate lost items — like a misplaced set of keys, for example — Tile’s new product will take advantage of UWB (ultra wideband) technology to find the missing items. It will also use augmented reality to help guide users to the lost item’s location via the Tile mobile app.
Like Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, UWB is a short-range, wireless communication protocol, but one that operates at very high frequencies. It can be used to capture spatial and directional data, which is where it comes in handy to lost item finders, like Tile’s trackers.
Apple last year began to give third-party developers access to its U1 chip, which uses UWB technology to make the iPhone spatially aware, via its “NearbyInteraction” framework. Some Android devices also ship with the technology. It’s unclear to what extent Tile is using the new frameworks with its forthcoming product, and the company is likely under NDA with regard to its work with Apple specifically, per earlier reports.
Based on Tile’s internal concept art for the device (shown below), Tile’s UWB model will look similar to its other small trackers, like the Tile Mate and Tile Pro. It will also have a square shape, center button, and flat back to support being mounted using an adhesive. And like other Tile dongles, it can be attached to a keychain.
Image Credits: Tile concept art
Typically, Tile dongles would be attached to things like keys, remote controls, handbags, duffels, luggage, or other small carry items, or stuck to larger devices like personal electronics or bikes. However, lost items could only be located by way of Bluetooth, when nearby, or via Tile’s “community find” network when further away. The latter leveraged the Tile app installed on its users’ phones to help locate any Tile tracker set to a lost mode, then ping the item’s owner when the item was found. This has allowed Tile users in the past to locate lost items like those left on an airplane by mistake, for example.
The new Tile tracker, on the other hand, will use UWB to make the finding process easier than before.
Because UWB offers spatial awareness capabilities, it will be able to locate missing items inside or outside, even when you can’t hear the tracker’s ring. This could help when the missing item is buried under something — like a sofa cushion — or inside something like a dresser drawer, for example. It can also help to find items more easily in a larger space, like a house with multiple floors.
The Tile app, meanwhile, will allow users to launch to an AR-enabled camera view that will help to guide them to the item’s location using overlays, like directional arrows and an AR view of the item’s location.
Image Credits: Tile internal concept art
Per sources familiar with Tile’s plans, we understand Tile expects to release the new tracker later this year with support for both iOS and Android devices. Pricing is unknown. Tile will still sell its popular Bluetooth-enabled devices, of course, as a good portion of the market does not yet own a UWB-enabled smartphone at this time — the technology is only found in newer devices.
Though Tile has historically led the market in comparison with other third-party lost item trackers, the company is due to face increased competition in 2021 as new trackers arrive from top smartphone brands, like Samsung and Apple.
A UWB-powered tracker could help allow Tile to maintain its position in the market. Tile, as of last year, had sold 26 million Tile devices, and was locating around 6 million items per day across 195 countries. Tile’s website now says its devices reach over 230 countries and territories. With this scale, Tile today leads the market. But Apple’s AirTags could have a first-party advantage with deep integrations into its “Find My” app — a concern that was brought up by Tile in last year’s antitrust hearings in reference to how Apple wields its platform and market power to overrun competitive businesses.
Tile is not speaking publicly about its plans for a UWB device at this time.
“While we can’t comment on our product roadmap, we’re constantly looking to improve our customer experience and solve the pain point of finding lost items,” a spokesperson for Tile told TechCrunch.
